Is An Ecommerce Website Right For A Small Developing Country? Are we not ready yet or will we ever be ready for such a thing? I might as well tell you right now that I don’t have the answer for these questions. But it’s definitely something I’ve pondered frequently about. It’s all the rage everywhere else; everyone’s staying at home and opening shop online. Why can’t we do that here in Seychelles? Why can’t stay at home parents or anyone in general just stay at home and work from there? If this is possible for people abroad why can’t it be possible for the average Seychellois?
Seychelles is a very small developing country. We still have a long way to go in terms of ecommerce and online shopping carts. Heck, we’re even very underdeveloped when it comes to search engine optimization and internet marketing in general; to the point where there is barely any demand for it.
If I were to consider my personal online experience with both web design and development I would have to say it’s always been easier to earn through internet marketing. What keeps my websites up and online bills paid for is not web design but automated income through SEO. But anyway, that’s another story.
Permit me to attempt to answer the questions above:
.] How underdeveloped is Seychelles in online business?
‘Underdeveloped’ is the keyword. Internet Technology is still at its early phases here. We don’t even have enough people in this industry. We don’t have enough Seychellois online. We don’t have enough Seychellois who are educated about using the internet. We are developing at an awesome pace however, but it is still not enough. While the country aims for 100% literacy, we should also consider the importance of computer literacy. Only when we have achieved this will there be a market for online businesses catering to locals.
.] Is An Ecommerce Website Right For A Small Developing Country? Are we not ready yet or will we ever be ready for such a thing?
First, let us look at small developed countries like Singapore. They have their own eBay, they have a large population that have access to internet and a good number of people who actually know how to shop online. Which came first, the chicken or the egg? If we were to have several local online businesses will we start seeing even more pop up and will the users follow? Or will everyone need to learn how to shop online before we start establishing online shops? Singapore also does well because of the people there can afford it. They have credit card facilities that can be used online, and they have lots of people with credit cards. This alone keeps many locals here away from online shopping. But payment method alone should not keep an industry away from being able to develop.
What about alternative methods of payment; what about cash payments? Many websites overseas accepts payment by cash. This should not be an issue for Seychelles as it eliminates the necessity for online security for online payment. I do have hope for the country though, I believe we will be ready for all this one day. Perhaps we are all ready, but just waiting for someone to come up with an online mall…As the number of registered private businesses increases and the cost of setting up shop plus monthly rent, more and more people find themselves having to keep their stock at home. Although this works especially if they have found a good number of regular customers, they might have even more customers if they were to offer an online catalog or shopping cart website.
I believe there is also a certain hindrance when it comes to developing online shops as well. Companies will charge tens of thousands of rupees for a shopping cart solution. Perhaps I should take on a project like this. If I charge $0 for such a service, will adverts be enough to fund the cost of maintaining the site? Although this will be legal for me because I would just be providing a platform for buying and selling, what about people on there who have set up shop and are not registered businesses; would that be illegal? Do I even have time to build, let alone maintain such a site?
Questions, questions, questions.
I don’t have all the answers, and all my answers are from my perspective of things. But it will be interesting to follow the progress of this part of the industry.
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WYSIWYG! I'm a simple person trying to live the simplest life possible - it seems to be the most difficult thing to achieve! I'm an internet enthusiast and I've been a webmaster since early 2007. I like: blogging, developing sites using open source software, social media, computer games, '80s music, comedy & horror, animals, crunching on M&Ms peanut and Smarties!
Great article!!
Thank you for the encouragement Seygrl.
Hi.
My wife and I have been trying to see if we can trade on-line to the Seychelles, and accept payments without credit cards, and some ideas.
However, my wife (who spent time growing up in the Seychelles) is under the impression that it would be difficult to transfer a payment in Rupee’s to the UK in GBP through the banks.
This has proved a stumbling block, as we would love to progress this idea.
Mark and Anna
Several payment methods spring to mind: Paypal, Western Union, wire transfer, etc. I haven’t had the chance to find out if local bank accounts here in Seychelles can link to Skrill (aka Moneybookers).
We even considered allowing people to pay into an account there with a reference number for the transaction to make it even easier, if people have no other method available, and to save on costs.
Are there any websites as yet for on-line shopping? Maybe we should build one and get it hosted over there.
As far as I know, there is no ecommerce website specifically catering to locals. But from what I hear, a group of locals are currently developing a Seychelles version of eBay.
There is a handful of websites showcasing products that can be ordered, but there are no shopping cart features on these sites. They’re basically just shopping catalogue type of websites; you find something you like and you can order it and sort out a payment method.
Online payment aside, there is still the question of internet knowledge (or lack of). As a local web designer, I meet a lot of people here who have difficulty signing up for a website…even something as simple as Facebook with its largely visible and extremely user-friendly registration form.
I don’t mean to make anyone look bad but this is just based on personal experience with people I deal with all the time.
That said, I believe there is a growing demand for this type of thing. More and more locals are interested in setting up ecommerce sites. So you might as well go ahead and test the waters with this one. If it’s not you, it’s going to be someone else.
The payment method you mentioned above is definitely a possible one.
Maybe I should have a go.
I am very computer literate, and have a daughter who is a design graduate and can design something.
If you have any thoughts on web hosting facilities there? I would have to explore making any such site readily visible to local searches as things improve. Newspaper advertising of the site would probably be needed, as strange as that sounds to me.
I’d advise you to host overseas. It’s a lot cheaper, better uptime and generally provides more stable hosting.
I am going to make some serious investigations on the feasability of this.
I have spoken to Paypal, and its a goer for those with accounts or credit/debit accounts via a website.
I have emails Seychelles Customs for advice.
Barclay’s bank next, for cash payers, then source wholesalers.
If it looks like its possible, I may go ahead, so any useful contacts you may have would be appreciated, maybe Email me for privacy.
No reason why in the long term we couldn’t host other peoples goods ( for a fee) if on-line retailing isnt readily available.